Authorities have released more details about the a brutal pitbull attack on a Virginia woman in an attempt to dispel theories of foul play.

As CrimeOnline previously reported, Bethany Lynn Stephens was found dead on Thursday night two days after she took her two pitbulls for a walk in the woods. Her father had gone searching for her after she went missing and was the first to discover her body.

“The victim had defensive wounds on her hands and arms trying to keep the dogs away from her, which would be consistent with being attacked while she was still alive,” Goochland County Sheriff James Agnew told WTVR.

“It appears she was taken to the ground, lost consciousness, and the dogs then mauled her to death.”

Reports of the 22-year-old woman’s death have been met with scrutiny and skepticism about the likelihood that her beloved dogs would turn on her. Bethany’s friends told WRIC that she had been getting death threats, and that they didn’t believe the dogs alone were responsible for her death.